Android has always been heavy on the customization aspect and allows the users to go through various devices, services, and experiences that have allowed complete freedom. Google has provided us with an ecosystem that is unrivaled in terms of choice. Today, Google has announced that Android is now running on more than 3 billion active devices worldwide. Along with that, Google has shed light on the design elements that Android 12 will be built around, and it is called Material You.
Android 12 with Material You Looks Like a Customization Heaven
With Android 12 and Material You, Google is looking to make your phone a deeply personal device that adapts to you. With that, an operating system that offers private design and makes your overall experience a lot better. Google is also releasing the Android 12 beta, which should give you a good look at everything that will be a part of the new system in the future.
For starters, the biggest change Android 12 brings is the depth of personalization, starting with a wonderful mix of colors. You will be able to completely personalize your phone with custom color pallets, redesigned widgets, as well as using a feature called color extraction to help you choose wallpapers that will reflect on your theme. You can have a consistent shade of colors across the entirety of the interface, or you can mix and match.
In addition to that, Android 12 also brings fluid motion and animations; this is how Google claims it is going to work.
From the moment you pick up an Android 12 device, you’ll feel how it comes alive with every tap, swipe and scroll. Your phone quickly responds to your touch with smooth motion and animations. For example, when you dismiss your notifications on the lock screen, your clock will appear larger so you know when you’re all caught up.
Android 12 is also going to offer simplified interactions that aim to make the experience more efficient. Google also claims that the new experience has reduced the CPU time by up to 22% and reduced big cores by up to 15%.
Additionally, Android 12 also brings redesigned system spaces, which means that notification shade, quick settings, and the power button have been reimagined to give you a better experience. Here is how Google puts it,
The notification shade is more intuitive and playful, with a crisp, at-a-glance view of your app notifications, whatever you’re currently listening to or watching, and Quick Settings that let you control practically the entire operating system with a swipe and a tap. The Quick Settings space doesn’t just look and feel different. It’s been rebuilt to include Google Pay and Home Controls, while still allowing for customization so you can have everything you need most in one easy-to-access place.
To make sure you always have help from Google at your fingertips, you can now long press the power button to invoke Assistant to make a phone call, open apps, ask questions or read aloud text-heavy articles.
Android 12 is now more focused on transparency and privacy since it gives you information on apps that are actually accessing your data. You also have more control so you can make better decisions as to which apps will access the data you have.
Android 12 brings a new Privacy Dashboard that offers a single view into your permission settings and the data that is being accessed and how frequently it is being accessed, along with the name of the apps that are accessing it. It also allows you to revoke the permissions.
There is also a new indicator at the top right of your status bar that will inform you when your microphone or camera is being used. If you want to remove the access to these sensors for the entire phone, Google has added new toggles in Quick Settings.
Google has also shared a trailer that highlights all the aspects of Android 12; you can check that out below.
You can download the Android 12 Beta 1 for your Pixel devices here.
